Glass Strings
by Riddly
Summary: Fate and Nanoha had always been the best of friends. What happens when a certain incident reveals that their feelings for one another have become much more? [FatexNanoha]


**Author's Note:** This takes place directly after the little hug scene between Nanoha and Fate in episode 18 of StrikerS. A/U from then on out.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Nanoha, Fate, or anything from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha.

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_** Glass Strings**_

Burgundy eyes stared up at the dark ceiling.

Artificial light dimly lit bits of the small bedroom, leaving harsh shadows in its wake.

The space currently surrounding her was alien, and yet familiar.

Riot Force 6 had been transferred to the Asura for the time being.

Blond eyebrows creased slightly at the memory.

The destruction back home had been extensive.

Despite all of that, the hardest blow to the crew, especially to herself and Nanoha, was the loss of Vivio.

Bitter tears began to prick at her eyes, taunting and teasing the young woman.

Letting out a deep breath, she suppressed the urge to cry, and glanced over at the other occupant in the room.

Nanoha was currently asleep, and wrapped tightly around Fate.

The side of her face was pressed deep into the other girl's shoulder, and an arm was thrown over her stomach.

One of her legs had gotten intertwined with Fate's, and the blond knew she wouldn't be able to move, much less get up without waking her.

Her expression softened as she gazed at her sleeping friend.

They would sleep cuddled like this on occasion back in the dorm.

Particularly when work had been especially rough.

As she observed her friend's sleeping face, thoughts of the two of them began to slowly filter through her mind.

The other girl had grown a great deal since their fated encounter so many years before.

Despite that, she was still that kind, caring, but extremely stubborn female that Fate cherished.

Reminiscing was interrupted suddenly by the sound of a soft moan.

Nanoha's fingers began to tighten on the thin black nightshirt covering Fate's upper half.

"Vivio…" The brunette mumbled out, her expression quickly changing to that of a pained one.

Startled, Fate began to gently nudge Nanoha, hoping to wake the girl up from the apparent nightmare she was having.

"Nanoha… Nanoha, wake up. It's ok," she said in that ever-soft tone of hers.

Turning, she untangled her legs from the other girl's and rolled onto her side.

Reaching forward, the blond began to gently brush stray strands of hair from Nanoha's face.

Bleary blue eyes slowly blinked into existence, confusion and worry apparent inside the dark orbs.

"Fate-chan…" she whispered, realization of where they were and what had happened slowly sank back in. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

Shaking her head, Fate pulled the young woman towards her.

Nanoha closed her eyes and pressed up against her friend, taking comfort from the warm presence and the secure arms wrapped around her.

"Bad dream?" Fate asked quietly, her chin currently resting on top of the girl's head as her hands rubbed at her back in comforting circles.

A nod against her chest was the only reply.

Fate didn't need to inquire further on what it had been about.

"We'll definitely save her, Nanoha. Please try not to worry too much, it'll exhaust you," she commented quietly, knowing the brunette would most likely worry anyway.

"I want to go save her so badly…" a muffled reply came after a few moments. "I can't help but dwell on how scared she must be… I promised her…" Nanoha began to choke up, and buried her face deeper against Fate.

Tightening her arms around her friend, the blond could only hold the now crying Ace until she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Fate received a rude awakening the following morning. 

A small screen flickered into existence in front of her, the face of a young brown haired woman staring down at her.

"Fate-chan!" Hayate said rather loudly, in an attempt to wake up her friend.

Eyes flashing open, she sat up quickly, startled.

Dazed, and still burdened with a sleepy haze, she blinked up at the screen of her Commander.

The worried expression etched on the girl's face was all the blond needed for the fog of last night to dissipate.

"Hayate, what's wrong?" she asked, beginning to feel concern gnaw its way up her empty stomach.

The blue-eyed girl gazed briefly at the empty spot next to Fate, and then back at her friend.

"Nanoha-chan left earlier this morning. She was warned not to go after Vivio yet, and she claimed to just be scouting the area…" blue eyes were downcast now as dark eyebrows drew together.

Fate simply blinked, knowing Nanoha wouldn't be satisfied with a simple scouting mission.

No, she had to have gone off on her own.

"I shouldn't have gave her the clearance to do it. She was so insistent though, and I knew it was killing her to have to wait around." Hayate replied slowly, letting out a deep breath as she raised her eyes once more to look at Fate.

"Is Nanoha ok? Really, leaving like that on her own… She should have known better." Fate replied, concern and worry for her friend now attacking her at full force.

Hayate was silent for a moment, her eyes already conveying what she had yet to put into words.

The blond instantly picked up on it, and her hands began to feel clammy.

"Nanoha-chan was captured. We received video confirmation from Scaglietti. She appeared to be severely injured, but he's most likely holding her for ransom or as bait. I doubt he would kill her." The brunette said in a steady tone, the Commander in her now taking over.

That was more than enough for Fate, who was already out of bed and beginning to get dressed at a rapid pace.

"Fate, I know you're upset and worried about Nanoha, but you can't go rushing off after her. This is obviously a trap, we can't risk you."

Determination and full on stubbornness absorbed that burgundy gaze as she looked back at the screen.

"Forgive me, Hayate, but I have to go. I need to go. Vivio is already captured, and now Nanoha is as well. I can't simply wait around anymore." She replied, now in her work uniform and heading for the door.

Sighing, the brunette nodded to herself. "I'll send some of our aerial forces with you. The forwards will be on standby. Please be careful, Fate-chan… I know how you feel, I want to rescue them just as badly…"

Hayate's words froze the Enforcer momentarily.

Looking back at the screen once more, she offered her friend a warm smile.

"I understand. Please forgive my selfishness." And then she was gone, the door shut and the sound of her heels clicking down the hall at a rapid pace.

"You're just as stubborn as Nanoha…" The Riot Force 6 Commander murmured, before the transmission screen closed.

* * *

Groaning, Nanoha struggled to sit up from her crumpled position on the floor. 

Her entire body hurt, and one of her eyes had swollen shut from bruising.

Shaking, she found it a difficult struggle to simply lift her upper body off the floor.

After several attempts and much pain on her behalf, she managed to prop herself up against a dingy wall.

Pale yellow light dimly lit the room, causing her to blink a few times with her good eye.

Once adjusted, she surveyed the small area that served as her prison.

Dust and grime covered the floors and wall, leaving a musky smell to the interior.

The soft rhythmic splash of water droplets could be heard to her left, and she noticed a leaking pipe in the corner.

Neglect could sum up the entire room, and she vaguely wondered how deep underground she was located..

A single blue eye gazed down at the cracked staff of her Intelligence Device.

A frown began to form on her bruised features, causing her to wince instead as it pulled down on injured tissue.

Raising Heart's core no longer was illuminated with that soft red light.

Holding it tenderly against her broken frame, she closed her eyes and tried to resist the torrent of emotions.

How foolish she had been.

The Ace's impatience had landed her into this situation, putting not only her, but also her device and Riot Force 6 in danger.

"Fate must be so upset with me…" she whispered to the floor, a sad smile tugging at her face.

The thought of her best friend began to instill guilt into the young woman.

She was almost certain that the Enforcer would come after her, which made her feel all the worse for placing her dear friend into such danger.

"We have to get out of here before Fate-chan arrives. I can't allow my selfishness to harm her as well as Vivio…" The brunette murmured quietly, her sore fingers gripping Raising Heart with renewed determination.

Before any chance of rebellion could be incremented though, the door to her cell began to click.

Someone was unlocking the door.

Stiffening, she glared at the pair of yellow eyes that greeted her.

"Takamachi-san, you wound me with such a look," Jail responded with an easy smile.

He came to stand in front of her as Tre and Quattro filled in from behind.

Nodding towards the Ace, Tre moved towards Nanoha until she was directly in front of the girl.

In one swift motion, the Number had hoisted her up into the air by the collar of her barrier jacket.

The fabric began to cut into her skin, and she could do nothing but struggle as she hung there.

They had left her too battered and out of energy to do anything else, much to Jail's pleasure.

"Uno, transmission to Testarossa-san." He called out into the thin air.

* * *

A screen blinked into existence, alarming Fate instantly as soon as she saw Jail's face. 

"I believe we have something that belongs to you," he said with a smirk as the image panned to Nanoha.

The brunette's barrier jacket was torn in several areas, revealing fresh and dry splats of blood on her clothing and exposed skin.

Anger began to boil up inside the young blond; a contrast to her normally calmed self.

"Does this sight bother you, Testarossa-san?" the dark haired man said in a mocking tone as Nanoha was suddenly slammed back into wall behind her, causing the girl to cry out in pain.

Glaring fiercely, Fate's hold around Bardiche tightened until her knuckles turned white underneath the gloves she wore.

He was edging her on, and she knew it.

The situation had gone too far now for her to turn back.

Letting out a shaky breath, she increased her flight speed towards Jail's facility as the transmission faded.

**Author's Note:** This is my first fanfic in over three years. ; I'm hoping it's not too horrible, and I'd very much appreciate your reviews. :D


End file.
